A ring depicting Pallas Athena was found at the site of the Battle of Kulikovo

Exploring the ancient Russian settlement of the XIV century, near the Kulikovo field, archaeologists discovered a ring with the image of the Greek goddess Pallas Athena.

The event was reported by the press service of the State Museum-Reserve “Kulikovo field”, writes RIA Novosti.

Candidate of Historical Sciences Andrei Naumov, Deputy Director of the State Museum-Reserve “Kulikovo Field” – the head of the expedition, which left in July on the banks of the Mokraya Tabola River, located in close proximity to the site of the Battle of Kulikovo. One of the diggers, the youngest on the expedition, brought him the found ring. Naumov says:

We archaeologists do not like sensations and surprises. At first they didn’t believe it, but there were witnesses – the guy really found him in a layer of turf. The ring does not belong to the period that we are exploring. We assume that this is the XIX century. Ring of high quality casting and amazing preservation.

The figure of a woman in drapery is depicted on the upper surface of the find, her head is protected by a helmet, and she holds a spear in her left hand. At the feet on the left is a massive shield with the image of the Gorgon Medusa, on the right is a snake. Behind the back are powerful wings that can symbolize the Goddess Nike. The archaeologist explains:

All these attributes are obligatory for the image of Pallas Athena – a warrior maiden, a representative of the highest world all-conquering power, one of the most revered goddesses of Ancient Greece. She was one of the twelve great Olympic gods and was revered as the goddess of knowledge, arts and crafts, the patroness of cities and states, sciences and skill, intelligence, skill, ingenuity. We have had such unexpected finds before. Last year, not far from this place, we found a pre-revolutionary wedding ring. Maybe there used to be a place for romantic dates here?

According to Naumov, the decoration is clearly not peasant, although it was found in the field. In the 19th century, the territory where the excavations are taking place belonged to the princes Golitsyn. According to the scientist, the ring could have been dropped by a representative of a princely family. The ring is small, about 17 sizes, so it is presumably female.

Today, scientists are looking for analogues of an unusual find, and its study will be continued. Andrey Naumov has been heading the archaeological research of the Kulikovo field since 2017. Before him, the monument was studied by the founder of modern archeology of the Kulikovo field and the Tula region, candidate of historical sciences Mikhail Gonyany, writes GreekReporter.

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